A+287 Debate on the practice of change – News – Architecture Workroom Brussels

In conversation with some "change practices" in the Actiris building in Brussels

How do design agencies contribute to the change agenda, what is the role of the designer in the big turnaround, and how do you, as a designer, accelerate the change? We discussed this with RE-ST, Artgineering, Endeavour, CityTools, Architectuurplatform Terwecoren-Verdickt, 51N4E and Plusoffice in the context of A+287.

In December 2020, the magazine A+ Architecture in Belgium will publish a special (English-language) publication on 'the practice of change': A+287 PRACTICES OF CHANGE, a collaboration with Architecture Workroom Brussels (AWB). The central question is how design practice contributes to social change, in many areas and often in many areas at the same time (mobility, softening, biodiversity, water use, energy, revitalization of a neighbourhood, new care concepts, reuse, affordability...). In other words: What are the other ways of thinking and acting that arose from an awareness of the ecological and economic challenges that we are struggling with today on a global scale, and how do they further stimulate change?

In this issue, in addition to about 10 recently completed or ongoing projects, we present a few longreads that look at the practice of change from a different point of view: from the point of view of the designer, the citizen, the government, the entrepreneur. At the basis of one of these longreads is a round table discussion with designers / architects / planners. The key question of the debate is: how does a design office contribute to the change agenda, what is the role of the designer in the big turnaround, and how do you as a designer accelerate the change?

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Since 2010, Architecture Workroom Brussels has focused on the future of our living environment. The organisation began as a safe haven to address the link between space and societal transitions, aimed at fostering a futureproof design practice, commissioning and building culture.

It has now become evident that the transformation of our streets, neighbourhoods, and landscapes is both a prerequisite and a lever for achieving societal goals in synergy. Yet we observe that these transformations remain difficult to imagine and implement. They span so many sectors and involve so many actors that responsibility falls on everyone, and therefore, ultimately, on no one.

That is why we make it our mission to create the space that connects them. And with this refined mission comes a new name: WORKROOM, House for transformation. WORKROOM is the shared space where the future of our living environment is not only imagined but also organised.

We are currently taking the lead on three mission-driven transformations:

SOCIETAL INCUBATORS - By 2030, stakeholders from the youth, culture, sports, care and education sectors will join forces to create renewed societal spaces that tackle loneliness and counteract the fragmentation and pressure on public infrastructure.
FOSSIL-FREE NEIGHBOURHOODS - By 2030, at least ten neighbourhoods will be underway with the transition to fossil-free energy in an inclusive and affordable way, with a view to completely phase-out fossil fuels by 2040.
SPONGE LANDSCAPES - By 2030, we will have achieved our water, agriculture and nature goals through a single, coherent approach at catchment area level, in which strong regional coalitions collectively enhance the landscape's sponge capacity.

To make these transformations a reality, WORKROOM works shoulder to shoulder with pioneering designers, local authorities, organisations and businesses, governments, knowledge institutions and impact investors.

Through co-creative design, we imagine shared pathways to the future in exhibitions, publications, innovation programmes and public programmes. These are the workrooms where we connect the actors capable of realising these transformations. From there, we design shared ownership and the organisational, funding and policy models that lead to real change.

The name is simpler. The stakes are higher. WORKROOM is the shared space where we tackle the social and spatial transformations that no one can achieve alone. In an era of polarisation, compartmentalisation and instability, that is perhaps the most radical thing we can do.